2026 SCCACS Advocacy Efforts
The Southern California Chapter of the American College of Surgeons is coordinating activities and proactively identifying and supporting issues that impact practicing surgeons and patients at the state and national levels. This is in collaboration with all three CA chapters formally termed the Joint Advocacy Committee of the ACS California Chapters (JAC-ACSCC).
Ongoing Legislation:
MORE UPDATES COMING SOON!
Ongoing Educational Development (in progress):
- Electric Bicycle Injury Prevention Toolkit
- COMING SOON! – Human Trafficking-Toolkit for Healthcare Providers for Identification and Support
- Fall Prevention Toolkit
- Opioid Disposal Toolkit
* Thank you to Hiyori S. Roberts, BS, MS; Audrey R. Yang, BA, MPH for their hard work creating the Fall Prevention Toolkit.
* Thank you to Gillian Li, BS; Gisselle Quiroz, BA; Margaret Canady, BA; Gina Klemm, MPH; Erika Azpeitia, MPH for their hard work creating the Opioid Disposal Toolkit.
SCCACS Advocacy Committee
Chair – Sigrid Burruss, MD, FACS
UCI
Thomas Duncan, DO, FACS
Ventura County Medical Center
Sammy Eghbalieh, MD, FACS
Southern CA Multispecialty Center
Lorraine Kelley-Quon, MD, FACS
CHLA/USC
Hari Keshava, MD
UCI
John Lam, MD, FACS
Southern CA Permanente Medical Group
Learn more about other advocacy efforts from previous years in the Advocacy Archive.
Ongoing Initiatives:
Pre-hospital blood Programs Improving Access to Prehospital Blood May Save 10,000 Lives a Year | ACS
Emergency Preparedness System National Trauma Emergency Preparedness System | ACS
Upcoming Events
Stay tuned for the next installment in the Advocacy webinar series. More information coming soon!
ACS Advocacy Summit
There are many active issues that the ACS is working on federally which were discussed with members of Congress and the Senate at our recent 2026 ACS Advocacy Summit held February 28 – March 3, 2026, in Washington, DC.
The event provided an opportunity for ACS members, leaders, and advocates to develop essential leadership skills and advocacy strategies. Through dynamic sessions and interactive workshops, attendees gained tools to strengthen leadership capabilities, advance healthcare policy, and influence the future of surgery.
The Advocacy Summit provides members with an update on the policy priorities the ACS is advocating for with federal lawmakers. Advocacy training and scheduled congressional visits enabled attendees to put their advocacy skills to work.
During the Summit, SCCACS Advocacy Committee Chair, Dr. Sigrid Burruss, was honored with the 2026 ACS Advocate of the Year Award. Burruss, who has long been a strong voice for surgical issues, is an Associate Professor, Division of Trauma, Burns, Surgical Critical Care and Acute Care Surgery and the Vice Chair of Education, Surgery, at UC Irvine School of Medicine. Burruss has been the Chair of the SCCACS Advocacy Committee since 2023 and a co-Chair of the Joint Advocacy Committee of the ACS California Chapters (JAC-ACSCC).
Sigrid Burruss, MD, FACS, Wins Advocacy Award
Check out some of the scenes from our members hard at work advocating for you.
